‘There could hardly be a more unbearable ? and more irrational ? world than one in which the most eminent specialists in each field were allowed to proceed unchecked with the realization of their ideals.?
? Friedrich Hayek, ‘The Road to Serfdom? 1944
As much as I love words, I believe there’s one word that should be eliminated from the dictionary because it no longer serves any useful purpose other than to give Scrabble players an easy two-letter score.
The word is ‘no.?
‘No? is a word that’s no longer respected or accepted by many folks in our society. ‘No? is no longer viewed as a legitimate answer to a question or an expression of an individual’s thoughts, feelings and free will.
‘No? is looked down upon as an annoying obstacle to be overcome through relentless cajoling, peer pressure, old-fashioned guilt, and, if necessary, outright coercion ? ah, the classics.
In short, ‘no? has become a four-letter word that shocks and infuriates a society where more and more people believe they’re entitled to get their own way all the time.
For years, kids and teens have led a full frontal assault on the word by endlessly pestering their parents to get whatever they want, be it the latest computer gadget, some hideous tattoo or a brand new car.
Judging by the things many of them have today, I’d say the youth of America have won their war on ‘no.?
Worse than kids are governments who repeatedly and blatantly ignore the word ‘no.?
When millage requests and bond proposals fail, they go right back on the ballot for another swing at it because many government officials can only accept the will of the people when it mirrors their own desires.
In the eyes of many government folks, when you vote ‘yes,? you’re an informed, educated, responsible, enlightened, generous, caring and civic-minded person.
When you vote ‘no,? you’re an ignorant, negative ogre who’s far too much of a simpleton to understand the complexities of why your government needs more of your money. Shame on you. You’re a cretin.
Government officials never chalk up their losses at the ballot box to an honest difference of opinion between themselves and the voters. After all, their need for more money is always an undeniable fact and how can anyone possibly disagree with an undeniable fact?
No, to them, failure at the ballot box must be the result of voters who were woefully uninformed or misinformed when they marked their ballots. Now, it is government’s duty to properly educate these poor misguided souls and show them the error of their ways ? no matter how many elections it takes.
But if we eliminate the word ‘no? from our lexicon, then we can do away with these pesky elections and just give government whatever it wants, whenever it wants it.
When you think about it, elections are simply a waste of time and tax money. In the end, they’re really just a formality because sooner or later, government is going achieve its goals at our expense because it refuses to take ‘no? for an answer. Like used car salesmen, officials wear us down by badgering us until they get their ‘yes.?
I say why bother to fight it anymore.
Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Down with No!
Won’t you join me by saying ‘yes? to ridding the world of ‘no? once and for all?